This is a Gouda recipe I put together to make in a few days from now. There are still some holes and questions I was hoping you all might be able to help me with. Any advice is much appreciated!

Raw Jersey Gouda

8 gal full cream raw Jersey milk (I might skim a little if I use milk that has had time to separate)1/4t MM100scant 1/8t LM57anatto*1 veg rennet tablet from thecheesemaker.com**

Test PHHeat milk to 86Fsprinkle cultures on top, let sit for a couple minutesStir in culture with top to bottom strokes.Add anatto diluted in __? water and stir inLet ripen for 15 min***Test PH looking for what?Add rennet diluted in 1/2c water and stir in with top to bottom strokesCut 1/2 cubes after floc time X3Heal curds 5-10 minStir gently for 20-30 minutesRemove whey equivalent to 1/3 original milk volume (2.5gal +2c)Add 2.5gal plus 2c of 130F water in two stages: first raise to 95F and stir for 5 min add remaining water to reach 98-102F****Stir curds gently for 30 minAllow curds to settle for 5 minPress under whey for 15 min OR:Scoop curds to warm hoops dipped in way or sprayed with vinegar and CaCl2

PRESSING WEIGHT: Dixon says 1.5-3lbs per lb of cheese, that seems like WAY LESS than what many of you do. I will be pressing in a heated box: 4- 1lb baby kadovas and 1- 4lb 8x8x6 wheel. Suggestions?

Flip cheese after 30 minFlip again at 2 hoursPress until PH 5.4 or 5.5Brine babies for 3-4 hours each and big wheel for 12 to 16 hours Air dry, flipping regularly, until rind is dry.WaxAge at 55F with 80-85 humidity.

* I bought the double-strength from Dairy connection but have never used it before. Any suggestions?**on his site he says 1 tablet will do 13 US gal of milk... last year I used 2 tablets for 4 gallons regularly. Much too much, but does 1 tablet for 8 gal seem like too little? It is raw milk though.***I saw a range from 10-30 min, so I decided on 15. Should I still expect to see any PH change before renneting?****The higher the temp the less moisture in final product, right?

I saw a range from 10-30 min, so I decided on 15. Should I still expect to see any PH change before renneting?

[/size][/size]I am not a gouda expert but in general, I watch for a .1 drop in ph to ensure an active culture. Your last statement about higher temp meaning less moisture is also correct. I can't help with the tablet info since I always use liquid rennet. Good luck.

Thanks JD. I am still having trouble getting the finishing touches of my cheese equipment in place, so it looks like I will be making a lot of fromage Blanc for the next week or so... It is so versatile.

Test PHHeat milk to 86Fsprinkle cultures on top, let sit for a couple minutesStir in culture with top to bottom strokes.Add anatto diluted in __? water and stir inI use distilled for all additives, 1/4 to 1/2 cup should be fine, the amount is not criticalLet ripen for 15 min***Test PH looking for what?as Farmer said, to be sure the starter culture has started workingAdd rennet diluted in 1/2c water and stir in with top to bottom strokesCut 1/2 cubes after floc time X3Heal curds 5-10 minStir gently for 20-30 minutesRemove whey equivalent to 1/3 original milk volume (2.5gal +2c)save the whey to make the brine, unless you already have brine madeAdd 2.5gal plus 2c of 130F water in two stages: first raise to 95F and stir for 5 min add remaining water to reach 98-102F****Stir curds gently for 30 minAllow curds to settle for 5 minPress under whey for 15 min OR:Scoop curds to warm hoops dipped in way or sprayed with vinegar and CaCl2

PRESSING WEIGHT: Dixon says 1.5-3lbs per lb of cheese, that seems like WAY LESS than what many of you do. I will be pressing in a heated box: 4- 1lb baby kadovas and 1- 4lb 8x8x6 wheel. Suggestions?I'm assuming it means 1.5 - 3 PSI, and not pounds, but that is still quite a bit lower than I have been advised. (See my thread on knitting my goudas). There, the general consensus was 5 - 6 psi. Don't worry about over-pressing. Moisture content of the finished cheese isn't determined by the amount of pressure applied. (see below)

* I bought the double-strength from Dairy connection but have never used it before. Any suggestions?**on his site he says 1 tablet will do 13 US gal of milk... last year I used 2 tablets for 4 gallons regularly. Much too much, but does 1 tablet for 8 gal seem like too little? It is raw milk though.1 tablet for 8 gal seems too much, actually. I'd go with 3/4***I saw a range from 10-30 min, so I decided on 15. Should I still expect to see any PH change before renneting? I suppose the range is to cover both bulk starter (which is active before adding) and DVI (which takes a few minutes to rehydrate and regain activity). I think it would be best to use pH as a check to continue, rather than timing. Check at 10, 15, 20 minutes to see if the pH has dropped, then continue when it does. If after 30 - 40 minutes the pH hasn't dropped, something is wrong.****The higher the temp the less moisture in final product, right?Yes. Also, the size of the cut curd, length of scalding, and scalding temperature.

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I am constantly in awe of the very first people that consumed these things, despite how funky looking and smelling they had become.

Thank you so much Mark! I am very excited to experiment with the rennet and see if last year I was regularly using more than double what I should have... We had quite a few bitter wheels..

Regarding weight, after pressing in the whey, this is what Peter Dixon's online Gouda recipe says: "Place on followers and begin pressing with 1 1/2 lb. weight per 1 lb. cheese. Use up to 3 lb. weight per 1 lb. cheese."

I thought it might be a typo, so I will go something heavier, but maybe not 5 psi as I plan to keep the curds warm throughout pressing, hopefully meaning I need less weight.

I found that pressung at 3 psi (and, accidentally, 6) was really quite effective... Next time I'll "meaure twice and cut once" and ramp it up to 3 psi without going first to 6..

Initally I just moved my cheese into a dutch oven, filled with the whey from making the cheese and pressed under a few lbs ( I used a #10 can of veggies and a milk jug full of water) to get an initial knit of the curds...

When I moved to the monster press, it was quite obvious (as whey came streaming out of the hoop) that the curds would be quite tightly packed. It went from about 6" (8" round, 6" high) to about 4 quite quickly... After I was done pressing overnight it was about 3". All in all it weighed 3.1 lbs when done, prior to going into the brine. After going into saturated brine for 12 hours (1 lb salt to 2 quarts water) and air-drying in my pantry for 3-4 days, it was down to about 2.3 lbs.

I used the following recipe (shamelessly stolen from elsewhere on the board and slightly modified to add flora danica):

Process:Heat milk to 86 degreesAdd colorant and mix wellAdd MM100 culture and Flora Danicaand float for 2 minutesStir in culture using 25 up and down strokesAllow milk to ripen for 5 minutesAdd Calcium Chloride5 minutes later add Rennet and stir for 1 minuteCheck for flocculation and use multiplier of 3 to determine time to cutCheck for clean break and cut to 3/8”Heal curd for 5 minutesGently stir curd for approx. 20 minutes while checking Ph.During this time heat pot of water to 130 degrees on stove.You are looking for a whey Ph of 6.4 to 6.45 before moving to next step

At Ph 6.4 – 6.45 Drain 5 cups of whey and replace with 5 cups of 130 degree water.Wait 5 minutes and Drain 6 cups of whey and replace with 6 cups of 130 degree water.Wait 5 minutes and drain 6 cups of whey and replace with 6 cups of 130 degree water.You will have drained the whey 3 times at the end of this process.Whey temp should be at 100 – 102 degrees at this point.If not at 100 – 102 heat the curds and whey to this temperature.Continue to stir for 20 minutes after 102 is reached. Only stir occasionally.Allow curd to settle for 5 minutes.Drain whey to 2 inches above the curd mass.Press curd under whey for 10 minutes using approx. 8 lbs. Of weight.Drain whey very well before putting into hoop.Break up curd mass to fit in cloth lined hoop and use the following to press:30 minutes at 2 p.s.i.30 minutes at 4 p.s.i.Approximately 3 hours at 4 p.s.i. or until whey Ph reaches 5.6 – 5.7 (curd Ph = 5.4 – 5.5)

**NOTE** WHEY PH SHOULD BE 5.6 – 5.7 AT END OF PRESSING!!

Remove from press and float wheel in a saturated brine solution for 3 – 4 hours PER POUND of cheese. (first attempt required 16 hour brine time using 4 hr. per pound).Age cheese for 2 weeks – 2 months before consuming. Vacuum bag cheese after air drying for 1 – 3 days or until dry to the touch.

I am finally making this today and at the moment I am at 40 min since innoculation and the PH has not dropped. The cultures should not expire until 2011. I put 1/4t MM100 that I have had for 1 year, but was just opened today. and a scant 1/8t of brand new LM57. Both have exp dates in 2011. The milk (8 gal) was all fresh out of the cow. Could it be that the milk had very little lactic acid (being so fresh) so it is getting started slowly? Or not enough culture? Help me, please.

I am finally making this today and at the moment I am at 40 min since innoculation and the PH has not dropped. The cultures should not expire until 2011. I put 1/4t MM100 that I have had for 1 year, but was just opened today. and a scant 1/8t of brand new LM57. Both have exp dates in 2011. The milk (8 gal) was all fresh out of the cow. Could it be that the milk had very little lactic acid (being so fresh) so it is getting started slowly? Or not enough culture? Help me, please.

Not enough culture and raw milk seems to be very fresh. What was original pH?

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Taking an extended leave (until 2015) from the forums to build out my farm and dairy. Please e-mail or PM if you need anything.